Help Please, new to this and lost

[Mom_needs_help]

So Hello 👋
I've read through some of the topics here and I'm just not getting anywhere so I've give in and asking for help.

I took my sons to a local tank museum and paid to let them play with the RC tank club that meets there occasionally. They of course wanted a RC tank but I couldn't afford one. So, off to ebay I go and find one that supposedly works, just needed a remote. So I got the tank. I contacted a seller that was selling different parts, upgrades etc and they recommended me a transmitter that they said would work.

Well, the tank will turn on, the lights flash but for the life of me I can't get the remote to pair. Can anyone look at the pictures and tell me if they will work together and if so, what am I doing wrong??

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

It's a Heng Long 7.0 Snow Leopard

[Rubicon99]

So Hello 👋
I've read through some of the topics here and I'm just not getting anywhere so I've give in and asking for help.

I took my sons to a local tank museum and paid to let them play with the RC tank club that meets there occasionally. They of course wanted a RC tank but I couldn't afford one. So, off to ebay I go and find one that supposedly works, just needed a remote. So I got the tank. I contacted a seller that was selling different parts, upgrades etc and they recommended me a transmitter that they said would work.

Well, the tank will turn on, the lights flash but for the life of me I can't get the remote to pair. Can anyone look at the pictures and tell me if they will work together and if so, what am I doing wrong??

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

It's a Heng Long 7.0 Snow Leopard

First off IT IS NOT the “new version” 7.0 Snow Leopard aka Pershing. If they listed it as such they lied. It is a very very very old system that has not been produced for more than 8 years. This is easy to tell from the “channel crystal” in the battery box and “volume knob” next to the battery box. These old tank control systems were and are junk as they came from the factory, so it is not surprising that you cannot “bind” with it.

Also it is NOT compatible with any of the new current 6.0 and higher HL systems. Which means it cannot IR battle with newer HL tanks in its current form.

Your best bet at this time is to completely strip out the old control system and replace it with an entirely new 6.0-7.0. It should cost you no more then $60-$80 for a complete Heng Long 6.0-7.0 system and transmitter combination.

[Operator7G]

I don't know if you have the option of returning it and getting your money back, but that may be the better way to go rather than throwing more money at it, especially if you don't even know for sure that it works. I'm all for letting kids learn how to fix things, but there's also not much more frustrating than working on something and not knowing if it actually works and then spending more on parts than a new and functioning tank would have cost up front.

[SoCalBobS]

There are a couple of things you could tinker with, if you haven't already. It's a very old system, as R99 noted.

There is an A-B-C switch that, if I recall correctly, you can select one of three channels. This was so more than one tank could be used concurrently.

Also, the channel crystals have different labels; one starts with TX, the other RX. This shouldn't matter, but one may be for the Transmitter, one for the receiver (tank). I could be wrong, I'm very rusty on the old stuff. You might search online for the Heng Long RX-18 binding process.

Lastly, there is a confusion about the label on the board. Yours says TK RX-18 V7.0. There is a new electronic system for the modern versions of these tanks labelled 7.0, but it's a completely different technology. Yours is a 52mhz frequency setup, modern ones are 2.4ghz. No compatibility.

Hope you get it to work, but as others have mentioned, the older stuff isn't as capable as new. Maybe it'll be good for occasional use by your son.

[DavidN]

I think you should return the whole thing. I would go back to the club and share your story with the members there while your sons are playing. It's best to have the members there helping you out and finding great deals on good tanks for your sons to play. They know more.

[Evan D]

FM (and AM) radios didn't bind. That's something that came along with spread spectrum radios (2.4G). If they are on the same frequency, TX and RX, it's "bound".

I agree with return and buy something newer.

[Mom_needs_help]

I think you should return the whole thing. I would go back to the club and share your story with the members there while your sons are playing. It's best to have the members there helping you out and finding great deals on good tanks for your sons to play. They know more.

Was my first thought but they don't have a public meeting again till the end of May

[Mom_needs_help]

First off IT IS NOT the “new version” 7.0 Snow Leopard aka Pershing. If they listed it as such they lied. It is a very very very old system that has not been produced for more than 8 years. This is easy to tell from the “channel crystal” in the battery box and “volume knob” next to the battery box. These old tank control systems were and are junk as they came from the factory, so it is not surprising that you cannot “bind” with it.

Also it is NOT compatible with any of the new current 6.0 and higher HL systems. Which means it cannot IR battle with newer HL tanks in its current form.

Your best bet at this time is to completely strip out the old control system and replace it with an entirely new 6.0-7.0. It should cost you no more then $60-$80 for a complete Heng Long 6.0-7.0 system and transmitter combination.

Can you send me a link to one of these kits please? At this point I couldn't return it if I wanted too and the boys really want to get this thing going.

What website do you all recommend buying rc parts from? My sons have got some upgrade kits for their WPL rc military trucks from Amazon that were junk, looking for a quality company to purchase from.

Thank You All for your input and advice!

[DavidN]

To buy tanks for your sons to play with each other is easy. To buy tanks to qualify for the rule of the the RC club where you want your sons to play is not easy. So let us know your intention and where this club is, then some of us might help you out.

[BcuriousR]

This will do it. (or a setup like it)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/324766549053?hash=item4b9d98443d:g:tD4AAOSw2~ZhJzTv

Be prepared for some serious rewiring. Not hard with the right tools, terminals, and a diagram. Anyone here can walk you through it, if you choose to fall down that hole.

[DavidN]

I have upgraded many of my Henglong tanks. I now have a few extra transmitters and TK6.0S boards left. Since you can not return that tank you bought, I can let you have a set to install in it.

[RichJohnson]

This is very sad. That snow leopard is indeed very old. And I dont think that is even a factory paint job, was it sold as used?
You will be lucky if you can get the radio to work with the tank, it probably will not, there have been several versions of those old systems each evolution having its own idiosyncricies.

As mentioned you can buy a newer radio system of a 6.0 and install it in the tank. It would take one of us experienced guys about 30 minutes. For you it might be easy or it might be a rip your hair out experience depending on your level of skills with this type of stuff.

If returning the tank for a refund is not an option you can do as mentioned or the other option sadly is to set the tank aside and buy another one that is new and properly set up out of the box which will guarantee it will work perfectly. The Pershing, M4 Sherman, and T34 are all bullet proof rc tanks out of the box that do not loose tracks or have recurring problems if you decide to scrap that bad purchase and buy a new tank. You can find lower cost all plastic versions from the high $100 range up to highly upgraded metal versions for several hundred dollars.

[Mom_needs_help]

To buy tanks for your sons to play with each other is easy. To buy tanks to qualify for the rule of the the RC club where you want your sons to play is not easy. So let us know your intention and where this club is, then some of us might help you out.

My intention is for the boys to have a rc tank to play with out on the yard with all the RC military trucks and such.

As far as I know that group only meets there a few times a year and it is over an hour away from me anyway. We are not looking to join a group, that is just how they first got to play with one.

[Mom_needs_help]

This will do it. (or a setup like it)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/324766549053?hash=item4b9d98443d:g:tD4AAOSw2~ZhJzTv

Be prepared for some serious rewiring. Not hard with the right tools, terminals, and a diagram. Anyone here can walk you through it, if you choose to fall down that hole.

Thank You

[Mom_needs_help]

I have upgraded many of my Henglong tanks. I now have a few extra transmitters and TK6.0S boards left. Since you can not return that tank you bought, I can let you have a set to install in it.

I would gladly buy a set from you. My boys aren't concerned with the latest thing, they just want one to play with.

[Mom_needs_help]

This is very sad. That snow leopard is indeed very old. And I dont think that is even a factory paint job, was it sold as used?
You will be lucky if you can get the radio to work with the tank, it probably will not, there have been several versions of those old systems each evolution having its own idiosyncricies.

As mentioned you can buy a newer radio system of a 6.0 and install it in the tank. It would take one of us experienced guys about 30 minutes. For you it might be easy or it might be a rip your hair out experience depending on your level of skills with this type of stuff.

If returning the tank for a refund is not an option you can do as mentioned or the other option sadly is to set the tank aside and buy another one that is new and properly set up out of the box which will guarantee it will work perfectly. The Pershing, M4 Sherman, and T34 are all bullet proof rc tanks out of the box that do not loose tracks or have recurring problems if you decide to scrap that bad purchase and buy a new tank. You can find lower cost all plastic versions from the high $100 range up to highly upgraded metal versions for several hundred dollars.

It was used, and cheap, but they claimed it worked. I have rewired a few things in my day, I work with a live sound company on the side and have helped rewire vintage speakers, amps, etc

I know how to solder and have been teaching 1 of my sons so far, hopefully this is something that will make the other 2 want to learn how to do this stuff.

[DavidN]

I think you should buy a RTR (ready to run) tank: M4 or T34/85. You can check it out and learn from it. Then you can buy the necessary parts to install into that old used one. If you want my used control transmitter and board, let me know (no charge).

[DavidN]

Here are what have that I think your used tank might need: transmitter, board, an emitter and an IR receiver. I will send them to you.

[Mom_needs_help]

I think you should buy a RTR (ready to run) tank: M4 or T34/85. You can check it out and learn from it. Then you can buy the necessary parts to install into that old used one. If you want my used control transmitter and board, let me know (no charge).

Next time I definitely will buy a brand new one or I will watch it run before I buy it. Lesson learned